


Sacrifice of Flesh and Blood

by Celanna192, Musical_life



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Brief Akechi/Akira/Yusuke/Ryuji, Brief Ryuji/Yusuke, F/F, M/M, Mentions of Ann/Makoto, Multi, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-31
Updated: 2017-09-15
Packaged: 2018-12-21 13:07:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11944869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Celanna192/pseuds/Celanna192, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Musical_life/pseuds/Musical_life
Summary: The interrogation ended differently, but what happens when the person you thought you killed isn't dead?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> [I'll steal your love Like a thief](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeD9TRZjkug)

Akechi couldn't stop his hands from shaking as his thumb brushed over the cancel call button on his phone. He had delivered what he thought would be good news to Shido, yet his nerves were strung tighter than tripwire. The smartphone weighed heavy in his hand. Heavier than the pistol he had used to put a bullet in Akira Kurusu's pretty head. Behind his closed eyelids, he could still see those wide, wolf grey eyes staring back at him in shock. He could feel the memory of his lips smiling gleefully as he pulled the trigger.

He clicked on his photo app. Swiping by the various photos of unmemorable faces until he found the one he wanted. Akira stared back at him, smiling. He remembered that day. The bespectacled boy had discovered his one guilty pleasure. The one thing that brought him a modicum of joy in his life. They had gone to a pancake house that day. Akira and he talked over pancakes. A simple pleasure. The boy whose hair was as black as midnight was more nuanced than he had led himself to believe. Which in turn had let him take down a few of his own barriers. Nothing he needed to concern himself with. Especially since his rival was now a Phantom Popsicle in the city morgue. He felt the faintest tinge of regret. More for not being able to allow himself to open up enough to catch the other boy's eye long enough to sate his lust than the for the loss of his life. Akira was just a means to an end. Everyone was. Everyone was expendable so long as he could destroy Shido.

Placing the phone in his coat pocket, he decided to calm his nerves with a bit of caffeine. He could watch Akira's guardian ruin himself with worry over a cup. A morbid bit of entertainment to take his mind off of talking with his mother's sperm donor.

The train ride to Yongen-Jaya was pleasant enough. The dull thrum of the wheels on the track helped him ease into a meditative state. He closed his eyes, picturing those wire framed eyes looking back at him. Attempting to bore a hole into his soul as if silently pleading with him to reconsider. The memory alone was enough to make his loins stir.

The November air was brisk, but tolerable as he exited the subway tunnel. Night had fallen some time ago. Leblanc would be closing soon. Though he was confident he'd make it with more than enough time to enjoy a little anguish and cup of coffee.

The bell over the door chimed, signaling his presence to the owner.

"Hey, we're closing up in a few minutes," Sojiro's voice was as gruff as usual, though he noticed it didn't bear any of the emotional hallmarks of despair, or grief.

"My apologies. I can always come back tomorrow," Akechi put on a false grin.

"Boss, let him stay. I'll close up and let him out when he's done," A familiar voice caused the chestnut haired boy to nearly drop his briefcase. Standing at the sink, lips drawn into the most innocent looking smile, was Akira Kurusu. The boy whom he had murdered two days prior. The boy who was standing at the sink, drying a ceramic coffee cup with a bleached white tea towel.

"Alright, then. Just finish the dishes before you go to bed," Sojiro grabbed his keys before heading out for the evening. Still awed by his rival's inexplicable survival, he could only watch as Akira locked the cafe door behind the older man, and flipped the sign to closed.

"Have a seat while I make you a cup," Akira gestured towards his usual chair. He silently obeyed, completely unsure how to address the elephant in the room. Akira Kurusu was supposed to be dead. Lying cold and stiff on a slab. There was no way he could have survived a gunshot wound to his fucking head.

He jolted when the supposed to be dead boy placed a dark, pungent cup of coffee in front of him.

"You seem awfully distracted tonight, is something on your mind?" Akira leaned over the bar, resting his chin in his left hand.

"I'm fine," Akechi brought the offered coffee to his lips. It was much more bitter than the medium roast Sojiro usually made for him. The coffee burned his tongue, but he couldn't help but down the whole cup. His hands shook as he set the emptied cup in its saucer.

"I don't know. You seem so tense. Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" Akira brushed his bangs away from his forehead with his right hand. Exposing a healing gunshot wound.

"WHAT THE FUCK!" Akechi bolted from his seat, stumbling in a blind panic for the door. He reached for the knob, but Akira was there, blocking the way out. Akira's hand closed around his throat. His grip surprisingly iron strong. Akechi had to will himself not to piss himself in horror as the pupils in Akira's wolf grey eyes lengthened into catlike slits. Sharp fangs protruded over the other boy's bottom lip.

"What the fuck indeed," Akira growled as he flung the other boy across the cafe. Akechi's head smacked hard into the corner of one of the booth seats before he collapsed onto the hardwood floor. He wanted to throw up from the blinding pain radiating from his right temple. He brought a shaky hand to his head, only to pull away when he felt sticky wet fluid soaking his hair. Instinctively, the boy detective tried crawling away as Akira sauntered over to him.

Akira crawled over him, pinning his bloodied hand to the floor with one hand and forcibly turning his head with the other. Akechi whimpered as Akira's rough tongue brushed over the gash on his head. As the dark haired boy lapped up the blood from the wound, the pain dulled into a mild ache. By the time he had finished, the pain was gone. Akechi could still feel the wetness from his blood on his hand, though Akira didn't seem to be too concerned with it.

"I don't want to kill you," Akira murmured in his ear. "Far from it actually, you’re very lucky I ran across that shithead who interrogated me after I left the morgue."

Akira's weight lifted from him in a flash. Able to move again, Akechi tentatively sat up, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

"Wash up. I'll have another cup ready for you when you're done," Akira nodded towards the bathroom. Not wanting to anger the other boy any further, Akechi silently picked himself up from the floor and made his way to the bathroom.

Once the door was closed, he began to hyperventilate. Fear overwhelmed him, allowing panic to settle in. He thought about locking the door, but his rational brain knew that it wouldn't stop Akira from breaking it down to get at him.

'He said he didn't want to kill me,' Akechi's brain rationalized. He repeated this statement to himself over and over like a mantra in a desperate attempt to quell the panic. He needed to get his fear under control.

Akechi willed himself to turn the cold water on. Methodically, like a surgeon would, he washed the blood from his hands. He then worked on rinsing his hair of any blood that Akira had missed. Gazing into the mirror, he noticed the gash along the side of his head was healing rapidly. He forced his lungs to take in as much air as they could before forcing it all out. Repeating as necessary in order to get his heart rate under control. When he felt reasonably sure he could face Akira, he turned the faucet off and opened the door.

Akira was standing on the other side of the counter pouring two cups of coffee. This time Akechi recognized the scent as the medium roast he always ordered. The booth and floor were completely cleaned of blood. The cafe appeared as if nothing happened.

"Let's talk more upstairs," Akira brought both steaming cups with him as he passed him to ascend the stairs. Akechi thought about running out through the front door. He even had half a mind to run through the glass in order to save time. Yet his feet carried him up the stairs behind Akira instead.

The dark haired boy was sitting comfortably on his couch, coffee in hand. His own cup he found resting on the table next to the banister. Akira's annoying cat was nowhere to be found. It was just them. No one would hear him scream from here.

"Like I said earlier, I don't want to kill you," Akira seemed to sense what he was thinking.

"Then what do you want?" Akechi couldn't hide the disdain in his voice. Akira chuckled softly. "I don't see how any of this is amusing."

"Hmmm?" Akira hummed in thought. "I think it's funny as hell. A boy who becomes a fuck toy at the age of fifteen, then graduates to personal assassin just so he can get a shot at murdering a man who refused to marry his mother, throwing him away in the process. The punchline of the story being that the boy dies before he can even get close to his target."

"How could..." A finger gently presses against his lips. He didn't even see Akira move. The other boy brushed his lips against the finger.

"The story doesn't have to end that way," Akira whispered. Akechi could taste the coffee on his breath. "It could end with you gloating defiantly over Shido as he holds a hand to his eviscerated throat. Your lips bathed in his blood."

"How do you know he plans to kill me?" Akechi knew it was a dumb question.

"My servants have told me," Akira pulled away. "I have quite a few under his employ that he doesn't know about."

"What are you exactly?" Another dumb question.

"I thought that would be fairly obvious," Akira let his fangs show.

"How old are you? I mean, how old are you really?" Akechi kept asking dumb questions. Perhaps, he rationalized, it was his way of handling talking with a vampire. A real vampire.

"I'm eighty seven years old," Akira answered, taking up his coffee again. "I was turned on August sixteenth, nineteen forty five. I lost my family on August 9th when America dropped the bomb on Nagasaki-shi. I had been sent out on an errand and was far enough away to survive the initial blast. Unfortunately, I was close enough to get a fatal dose of radiation. I don't know the name of the vampire who turned me, but they taught me well enough for me to thrive. I usually live as a normal teenaged boy. I have a pair of thralls I call my parents in order to keep up appearances. Though I have to change them out every decade or so. Shido crossed my path earlier this year."

"So, being immortal and above us pathetic mortals, you want to punish Shido for pinning an assault charge on you. Am I correct?" Akechi deduced.

"Very good," Akira smiled as he took a sip of coffee. "Truth be told, I don't even care about the charge. In a decade, I'll have a new name, new parents, a new life. But it is an insult to my pride to allow a pathetic mortal, as you put it, to make a fool of me. Shido isn't the first. He likely won't be the last, but they've all paid one way or another."

"I shot you in the head,"

"And you were punished for it," Akira was standing in front of him again. His hand brushed gently over the now healed skin on his head. "I don't want to kill you. I want to turn you."

"Why?" A shaky breath escaped his lips at Akira's proposition.

"I have many reasons," Akira breathed into his ear. "You're a remorseless killer, like me. For your own reasons, you want to punish Shido. I can respect that. Even encourage that. You've been conscripted into a world ending game where we play on opposite sides of the field. Perhaps after we deal with the petty gods and their game, we can continue with our own for eternity. Like me, you see humans as weak creatures. Physically and mentally. Why suffer as one of them, when you could become much more?"

Akechi didn't realize he was leaning into Akira as he spoke. Nor did he realized the other boy had moved behind him. His mind processed what Akira had told him. His offer was so tempting, but Akechi was too used to playing hard to get.

"I want more," Akechi's voice steadied itself.

"More?" Akira raised an eyebrow as he guided the chestnut haired boy to face him. Allowing his lust to override reason, Akechi guided the other boy into a gentle, yet deep kiss. His fingers combed through black, wavy locks, pressing Akira's lips into his own. The other boy obliged. Brushing his tongue against Akechi's lips in a bid for entry. Their tongues danced to a tune of soft moans. Akechi broke away first. His eyelids heavy as he savored Akira's unique flavor.

"Hmm, I think I can oblige," Akira smirked. "Is this a yes?"

"Oh yeah," Newfound confidence rushed through Akechi like a fire. Breath heavy with lust and the promise of revenge.

"Take your coat off. It's ruined anyway," Akira ordered. Akechi unbuttoned his bloodstained brown winter coat as Akira lifted a panel of boards from the floor. The chestnut haired boy peered down into the space, a lidless coffin lay within. The box held a layer of packed in earth.

"Dirt from the grave is important to us," Akira explained. "It's not from mine since the soil was too irradiated. I don't know who this belongs to."

"Anything else I need to know?" Akechi let his soiled coat drop to the floor.

"You'll be asleep for a few days while your body changes. Then you'll wake up hungry," Akira brushed a hand through Akechi's bangs. "Fortunately, I don't have to worry about you crying in a corner over your first kill. I'll explain more after your first feeding."

"Will it hurt?" Akechi returned to the dumb questions. Akira smiled warmly at him before nuzzling into the crook of his neck. Akechi allowed his eyes to flutter shut as the other boy peppered his neck with feather light kisses.

"Yes," Akira snapped his fangs over the boy detective's jugular. Akechi's cry caught in his throat as Akira began to drain him. Euphoria washed over him, dulling the pain in his neck. Akechi moaned, deep and guttural. The sensation of the dark haired boy suckling at his throat became pleasurable. His fingers dug into the fabric of Akira's white school shirt as he became lightheaded from blood loss. He groaned in disappointment when Akira pulled away.

"Don't stop....Please," Akechi panted and writhed in ecstasy. Akira unbuttoned his own shirt, exposing his neck and chest. With a talon like nail, he cut a thin line down his throat. Deep red weeped from the wound, starkly contrasting with the sheer paleness of his own flesh.

"It gets better," Akira embraced the other boy. Guiding his lips to the blood dripping from his neck. Akechi licked tentatively. Testing the flavor before drinking the red fluid enthusiastically. He used his teeth and tongue to coax as much blood as he could from the wound.

A sharp pain in his chest forced him from the font. Akechi clutched his chest as his lungs and heart seized. He desperately tried to cry out, but his body could not expel the breath trapped in his failing lungs. Darkness edged at his vision as he felt his heart slow in his chest. The last thing he saw was Akira smiling down at him as darkness stole his consciousness.

Akira wiped the blood from Akechi's face and neck with an old, wet washcloth. He closed the boy's eyes so that he wouldn't wake up with dried eyeballs. He wanted those chocolate brown irises to be perfect when he awoke in three days. He placed Akechi in his coffin then replaced the floor panel. One couldn't tell by looking at the room that there was a vampire hiding beneath the floorboards. Even Sojiro wasn't privy to all of his secrets. The man wasn't a servant after all. Just an old nobody who was unknowingly duped into housing a vampire for a year. He still didn't have a clue. He had made sure to disable Futaba's devices before Akechi arrived. She was a smart girl, but far too young to learn that monsters outside of the metaverse were real.

He picked up Akechi's coat, rifling through the pockets for any valuables before he disposed of the garment. He found the boy's phone with a missed call from Shido. No doubt he was expecting Akechi to respond promptly. He could pull off the ruse for a few days. Throw the mutt a bone or two while he waited for his partner in crime to wake up and join him in eternity.


	2. Chapter 2

Akira set his school bag lightly on the old table near the banister. Morgana popped his head out of the bag, too weary to completely remove himself.

"I'm pooped. Can we go to bed?" Morgana whined. Akira picked the cat up and sat him on the pillow of his bed.

"Actually, I'm going to be up for a little while. You can have the pillow tonight," Akira gently scratched Morgana behind his ears. A light purr resonated from the furball as blue eyes closed in slumber. Morgana was out like a light before he knew it. Perfect.

Akira gently lifted the floorboards hiding his secret, placing them delicately against his desk. He smiled lovingly at the sleeping beauty hidden within. Akechi's skin had grown pale over the last few days. The red he used to have in his cheeks faded to a dull peach that peaked out from behind a light caramel complexion. His hair was the same chestnut brown, yet it had gained a silken quality compared to the stringy mess he had before. Goro Akechi had been beautiful as a mortal, but now he was stunningly gorgeous. The new vampire stirred, moaning lightly before his doe brown eyes fluttered open.

"Evening beautiful," Akira lowered a hand. Akechi took it, allowing himself to be pulled out of his sleeping space. "Hungry?"

"Famished," Akechi purred encircling his arms around the other boy, "You were in the metaverse today. I can smell it on you."

"We had to work on Shido's palace." Akira ran his fingers through the other boy's silken locks. "We're having some trouble with the entrance fee though. Apparently Shido's presence is so pervasive it draws other people's shadow selves to him. We have to get these letters of introduction from five of them. It's annoying. We only got three of them today."

"You started without me," Akechi pouted. Akira couldn't help himself and took those pouty lips with his own.

"The others felt pressed for time. Especially with elections coming up," Akira explained, breaking their kiss. "They've been wondering where you've been. Especially since you appeared to have gone turncoat to aid Shido. I think we should use that to play a little game with them and Shido. Would you like that?"

"Maybe," Akechi teased as he leaned into Akira. Those pale, long fingers felt amazing running over his scalp. He was almost distracted from the hunger in his belly. "Food first."

"Of course," the dark haired boy left one last kiss on his lips. "Let's go out the front door. It's too cold to go out the window. Well, to leave it open with Morgana in the room that is. Shibuya then? I hear that some of Kaneshiro's goons might still be lurking around. No one would miss them."

"Sounds like fun"

* * *

Akechi made his way to the alley just off of Central Street where Kaneshiro's gang usually picked up desperate teens. The teenaged detective was a very desperate boy tonight. He tucked his hands into his spare brown school jacket, which had been discreetly retrieved by Akira's thralls. The coat would make him stand out in a crowd. It was his trademark look after all. His old customers would recognize him at a glance, and seeing that he was without an escort, would not be able to resist. They knew Shido didn't protect him from their sick desires. He was counting on it tonight.

His new senses caught the sound of footsteps behind him, two pairs. He had made a catch. Ahead of him, he could see Akira walking towards him, smiling. The two of them were just a pair of high school students meeting up. Perhaps before a jaunt to Big Bang Burger before a movie or the arcade. The two of them stopped to exchange a few mundane words. Acting oblivious to the men who preyed on them.

"Looks like we caught ourselves a couple of pretty ones," The younger of the two men quipped. The man had no sense for style. A pale pink button up shirt, unbuttoned at the neck. A cheap outlet mall quality leather jacket hung loosely over his lanky frame.

"Akechi-kun. I thought you were moving up in the world," The older man gave a wolfish grin. "Training a new whore I see."

"Goro? What's going on," Akira's voice cracked with feigned concern.

"Akechi-kun, tell your friend how good you really are with that pretty mouth of yours," The older man taunted. He moved his coat to show them the gun holstered to his chest. A warning that screaming and running were not options. "Maybe you can give him a demonstration."

The younger man grabbed Akira while the older man, whose name he couldn't bother to remember, dragged him into the adjacent door. It was a nondescript store room. Holding boxes upon boxes of either ammunition or alcohol. They were guided roughly to their knees. Gun barrels thrust threateningly in their faces.

"Get to work you filthy slut," The older man nudged his head with the tip of his pistol.

"Mind if you...put the gun away?" Akechi kept his voice calm and sultry. "I wouldn't want you to go off too soon and leave a mess all over the floor. Besides… You know I work better when both hands are on me."

The older man thought about his words then he placed the gun back into its holster.

"No teeth," He grunted, placing his hands on the boy's shoulders. Akira watched them. Akechi could see the rage boiling beneath the facade of fear. He placed his hands on the man's hips. Gently gliding them over his ass and down towards his hamstrings.

"But you always liked when I used my teeth," Akechi breathed into the man's clothed crotch. His talons sprang from his fingers as he raked them deeply across the man's flesh. The muscles were cut through so deep that his legs could not support his weight anymore. With a scream of pain and horror, the predator became the prey.

A gunshot rang out, but he was too focused on the screaming old fuck beneath him on the floor.

"Please, please! No... NO!" The man's pleas fell on deaf ears. Canines lengthened into miniature daggers, he then drew across the man's screaming jugular. Blood splashed everywhere, but he didn't care. It was warm, rich, with hints of wheat and vanilla. He drank greedily, ignoring the desperate hands trying to pry him away. Those hands eventually went limp across his back as the blood became thick and cold.

Akechi licked his lips and hands, savoring the remaining blood from his meal. He turned to Akira to see the dark haired boy finishing with the younger man. The man's cold dead hand gripped tightly to a smoking pistol. There was little to no blood on the body or on Akira. A contrast to the mess he had made of himself and his meal. His spare coat was now ruined along with his first.

"You look like you got more of your dinner on you than in you," Akira giggled. "We should probably go clothes shopping at some point. At this rate, you're going to be hunting naked."

"A sport you would enjoy, I'm sure," Akechi quipped back.

"Hmm...indeed," Akira sauntered over to his partner and lowered a hand. "Let's hit the bath house. It'll be open to us. There we can talk about a plan to get you out of Shido's service for good."

"Should we leave them here?" The detective asked, peering down at the bloody mess he made.

"Maybe we can make it look like a feral dog attack," Akira suggested before his form shifted. Akechi stared in wonder as the boy took on the form of a large solid black, shaggy wolf. "Come on. Just think of what you would look like if you were a wolf."

"Okay." Akechi breathed. He closed his eyes and cleared his mind. His wolf would have brown fur, like the color of his hair. He would be large like Akira's wolf. Expression contorted into a sinister snarl...

"Pfft..." Akira snickered, breaking his concentration.

"What?!" He growled.

"You're a husky," Akira barked out a laugh. "A cute one at that."

"What the hell? This isn't what I was thinking," Akechi whined, turning around in an attempt to get a better look at himself. Unfortunately, it only made him look like he was chasing his tail, which made Akira roar with laughter.

"Sorry love, but you're stuck with it" The black wolf was dying from laughter. Akechi snapped, but it came out as a whine. Upset that all he could do was whine, he bolted for the door. Tail unfortunately tucked between his legs. The door was shut though, and his paws couldn't catch the handle to open it. He scratched at the door, begging for someone to let him out. Completely forgetting he could just change back and open the door himself. He paced, upset and trapped.

"I'm sorry," Akira's furry snout bumped into his forehead. He nuzzled in as the wolf left little wolf kisses all over his face. Akechi didn't have it in him to respond, letting out a low cry in response. "Let me finish up with the bodies. Then we can take a bath, and I can explain a little more."

* * *

They took the train back to Yongen-Jaya in their 'wolf' forms. Akechi had been surprised when Akira had produced dog collars from who knows where with the address to Leblanc etched on the tags. Though the trains were mostly empty, those who were there stared at them. Well, more at Akira than himself since he was a big black wolf posing as a dog. He even panted at regular intervals like a dog in a poor attempt to look cute.

He pouted the whole ride home. Not bothering to hide that he was upset at the elder vampire for making fun of him.

The sign on the bathhouse door read closed, but Akira had a key in his human form. The boy opened up the door for them. Akechi trotted behind with his head down.

"You know, you could have changed back once we got to the alley," Akira closed and locked the door behind him. "It's the same as before. Just think of your human body."

The change was easier the second time. Before he knew it, he was standing on his own two feet. His clothes were still caked in blood, though he wasn't sure why he expected that they would magically clean themselves between the changes. He tried to keep himself from crying, still upset about Akira laughing at him. What did he do wrong? A sob choked its way out of him as he felt the other boy's arms circle around him. More followed.

"Your wolf form really upsets you huh?" Akira whispered, rocking his fledgling gently. "What were you thinking when you were trying to change?"

"A large brown wolf. About as big as you," Akechi sniffed. "A snarling one."

"Hmm," Akira hummed into his chestnut hair. "Let's get in the bath. I'll explain what happened."

The water warmed his cold skin as he breathed in lavender and eucalyptus. The herbs and steaming water settled helped to settle his emotions. Akira sat a few feet away from him, a pensive look on his face.

"You're starved for attention," Akira voice was flat. "You want so badly to be adored and loved. It doesn't matter who or how. It's how you were able to talk yourself into whoring yourself to that man and countless others."

"So what if I am?" Akechi's own voice was as cold as the snow on the ground outside.

"The wolf in us is supposed to represent the monster. The predator whose sole purpose is to kill and eat. But for you it's quite the opposite. The human is the monster. The predator who uses his boyish looks and sharp wit to snare his prey. The wolf represents your undying need for affection and adoration. You want love, but the you that was human rejected it as much as he wanted it." Akira softened his tone as he continued. "Your subconscious picked up on it when you were trying to set your form. You wanted to be a monster, but the truth is you were already one. This is just your brain's way of creating a balance. So the wolf becomes an adorable, friendly husky."

"So, what's your plan for Shido's palace as the Phantom Thieves?" Akechi changed the subject. He desperately wanted to avoid talking about his lackluster wolf form anymore. Akira scooted up to the boy detective.

"It's nothing to be upset about. You didn't do anything wrong," He drew the boy into a kiss. "As angry as I was to see that filthy, pathetic excuse for a human treat you so terribly, I loved how you drew him in then cut him down just as quick. The real predator is the one wearing this face. There really aren't many vampires who can wear themselves so openly. I wear the face of a schoolboy trying to get by in the world. Hunting later when I can give everyone the slip. You on the other hand hunt in the open. You don't have to stalk your prey. They're more than willing to come to you. Whether that be from trust because of your reputation, or arrogance because they think you're weak."

Akira certainly knew how to flatter him. He returned the kiss, so eager for the touch that he had been called out for craving.

"As for Shido's palace. Let's play a game," Akira snuggled into Akechi. "Confront us after we've been in for an hour or so. Vent your frustrations about Shido, the Phantom Thieves, even me. Engage us in a battle for a bit. Lose the battle of course. Likely Shido will have a cognitive version of you or us running around, which will likely present itself after all of the ruckus we make. Make a grand exit. The Thieves and Shido will probably think you're dead."

"It would probably look a little weird if I held back during the fight," Akechi nuzzled into the other boy, wrapping his arms around Akira's slender waist.

"Then focus most of your attacks on me. You won't have to hold back," Akira whispered. "The others will think you just have a grudge against me. Maybe throw a little something here and there to one of the others so they don't feel left out."

* * *

Warping between realities was the easy part now. Raising morale was getting harder and harder with every palace. Tonight was exceptionally rough on the group. Makoto was trembling so bad, Akira almost feared she could set of a seismograph. Ryuji tried to comfort her, but only ended up with a backhand for his trouble. Makoto had apologized as soon as it happened.

Futaba and Haru looked like they needed to cry, but didn't want to. At least not in front of him and the others. Even Ann was lost in thought. Yusuke ducked behind the planter to unload what meager lunch he had that day. He and Makoto had been hit by Loki's unusual power. Makoto because she shielded him from the attack. Yusuke because he tried charging Goro when he thought he wasn't looking. Akira made a mental note to give the starving artist a few thousand yen for a proper meal since his fledgling caused him to lose his.

"Don't touch me! Please! I can't..." Makoto cried.

"I can't...I can't get it out..." Yusuke whimpered.

"What the hell did he do to them?" Ryuji's resolve was beginning to break. Shit, he didn't need this right now.

"I'm not sure, but I don't think either of them should be alone tonight." Akira stated.

"I can have everyone at my place tonight. It's spacious enough to give everyone space, but I'll be able to keep an eye on everyone," Haru offered.

"Good idea. Besides, I think we need to debrief after that fight. It might help Makoto and Yusuke shake off the lingering effects from that attack," Morgana suggested.

"That sounds like a plan. Haru, take care of them for me please," Akira agreed.

"You're not coming?" Haru asked. "You wouldn't need to worry about my guards or staff, if that's the problem."

"I have some preparations to make," Akira interjected. "Don't worry about me. I'll be alright."

"Akira..." Morgana started.

"Go with them Morgana," It was an order. "I'll be fine. I think we shouldn't attempt the palace again for a few days. It's only the 26th, so we have a little bit of time to recover."

"Hey! Whatever happened to decisions being unanimous?" Ann finally spoke up.

"Ann, Makoto and Yusuke are in bad shape. Akechi probably died in there. I don't care what anyone thinks of him, but he probably didn't deserve to die like that." Akira scolded. "Until the entire group is in peak mental shape, I'll be taking charge. Right now, you guys will take care of Makoto and Yusuke. You need to take care of yourselves as well. We'll go back in a few days."

"Akira..." Morgana started again.

"Don't argue with me," Akira snarled. "I'll take the time to work with my connections for supplies and any extra information we can use. To be hon...To be honest, I...need some time alone."

"Akira?" Ryuji butted in.

"I'm sorry...I wasn't," Akira heaved in a false sob. He let a tear drop from his right eye. "I um...kind of developed feelings for Akechi."

"WHAT?!" Ryuji, Ann, and Futaba yelled out in unison.

"How can you? He tried to kill you?!" Futaba sputtered in disbelief.

"I know. It started a few weeks after the TV station trip. We bumped into each other at the train station. I don't know...I guess I just felt something. I know he tried to kill me. To kill all of us, but...I think there was just something in him crying out for us to save him." Akira's voice cracked harder than breaking ice.

"Akira, I'm sorry," Ann's voice softened.

"I just need a night guys," Akira got his voice under control. "I'll come by tomorrow afternoon with curry and coffee. I just..."

"Okay..." Haru reluctantly agreed. "Just take care of yourself please. I'll text you when we're all awake okay."

"Okay," Akira whispered.

As the group began to head out, Morgana held back until they were out of earshot. The cat looked pointedly at their leader.

"He's not really dead, is he?" Morgana growled. Akira gave the cat a knowing smile. "You know, it gets harder and harder for me to trick myself into thinking you actually care about us."

Before he could give the cat an earful, Morgana turned to catch up with the rest of the group.

Dusk had turned the sky until a lovely display of reds, golds, and purples. Morgana's words rang hollow in his ears. He had lost his humanity so long ago he had trouble empathizing even with the most remarkable of humans, which were few and far between. He walked the length of the wall surrounding the National Diet Building. Street lamps began to flicker on as the last rays of light disappeared into the earth.

"That was an award winning performance back there," Akechi stepped out from the shadow of the wall. "I could see the tear from here."

"Unlike your hammy performance. Your acting is only slightly better than Ann's," Akira smirked as he pulled the other boy to him. "They ate it up though."

"Indeed they did," The chestnut haired boy stole a kiss.

"Tell me. How does Loki induce a breakdown?" Akira was curious and concerned. "One of those attacks was meant for me."

"I can project my mental history onto other people. My past experiences, everything I've ever felt, done, had done to me, I can share that with others." Akechi explained. "I...With you the only thing I shared was what you already knew. I didn't expect her to throw herself in front of you. As for the artist, I shared with him what I felt when my mother killed herself. I guess some of the residual from the first attack got through."

_I can't...I can't get it out..._

"How do people perceive it," Akira shivered.

"Usually, they take my place in my memories. I can control that too. They can either watch or participate depending on what I want them to experience," Akechi continued. "I specifically just wanted you to see. You told me not to hold back."

"That I did." Akira remembered. "But, you did hold back. Otherwise, Makoto and Yusuke would have tried to kill the party."

"Yes. They should be fine after a stiff drink or two if Haru can oblige," The boy detective assured. "Those are my memories, not theirs. Their own minds will recover from them as if it were recovering from a cold. I've tested my abilities extensively. I know how much power to use to get the result I want. I used it against the Yakuza who used me for their personal pleasure. It's how I gathered my information. How I went from a common whore to a courtesan so to speak. From there I was able to convince one of Shido's closest confidants in the organization into allowing me to display my more lethal abilities."

Akechi found himself shoved roughly against the wall. Hands pinned him fast as lips locked over his. A demanding tongue petitioned for entry, which he obliged eagerly. He let his hands wander over the body in front of him. Eliciting a growl as he rubbed a firm hand over Akira's confined erection.

"So ruthless," Akira growled into his mouth. "I love it."

"Would you like to see the full effect?" Akechi moaned. "You pick. You can even pick someone you already redeemed. I don't need a palace or Mementos to make someone go insane."

Akira smiled as he thought of the perfect victim. The monster's offer was too tempting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for all of the wonderful comments and kudos. <3


	3. Chapter 3

"The youth of this country deserve leadership that will put their interests first. Too long have foreign interests determine the course of our great nation," Masayoshi Shido argued before the camera. The audience ate it up and applauded generously.

"Well said Shido-sama," His host agreed. "Now, if I may? What is your plan for domestic policy. Though we all know that the Phantom Thieves are hot in the news as of late, this question is not about them. I'm more interested to hear your opinion on the efficacy of our law enforcement. Many people online believe that the police are incompetent to down right corrupt. Do you agree with this opinion?"

"It is unfortunate that law enforcement has dropped the ball on many cases. Especially cases of corruption. I'm sure most of us old folk can recall the case of Tatsuzo Sudou and his corruption of police forces across the nation," Shido stated. "However, I do believe that since Sudou-san, many departments are taking steps to decrease opportunities for corruption to fester by increasing community involvement, tightening policy to prevent kickbacks, and reaching out to promising students who wish to serve their communities."

"Does this also include hiring students as junior detectives?" The host asked.

"I expect you're referring to Detective Akechi," Shido's voice betrayed nothing. "Akechi-san is a prodigy when it comes to investigative tactics. From what I understand the young man is quite thorough in his work and speaks only when he is sure the evidence will be there to back him up."

"Well, interestingly, I have just been made aware that we have a surprise guest," The host announced.

Akechi stepped out from backstage when his cue was given. Shido's face was neutral, though he could feel the seething rage behind those brown eyes he had unfortunately inherited. He smiled for the crowd. Gone was his school uniform as he had run out of coats. In its place was a smart, English cut, navy blue double breasted jacket. He wore matching pants, with shoes the color of polished coal. His shirt was a smart bone white, with an English spread styled collar. Finishing off his look was a silk, blood red tie, which was tucked neatly into his jacket.

The women in the audience swooned. More than a few of them creamed their panties from the smell of the room. A few of the guys as well from what he could tell. He flashed them a pearly white smile. They were his.

"Akechi-san, thank you for joining us," The host smiled. Akechi took his seat next to Shido, betraying nothing of their animosity for each other.

"Thank you for having me, and my apologies for this being so short notice," Akechi greeted. "My apologies to you as well Shido-sama. I'm sure your time is most precious, but I just couldn't say no when my agent suggested this meeting. Her reasoning was to help bolster your distinguished reputation among the younger voters. Though since your popularity is sky high already, I figure that what she really wants is your autograph."

The audience ate it up like dessert at a buffet. Akechi wasn't lying...much. His agent really had a crush for the cretin sitting next to him. She was such a good, albeit misguided agent. She had made a good meal too.

"It's quite alright," Shido gave the barest smile. "Considering our hosts line of questioning before your arrival, I'm sure this will be a very interesting discussion."

"Right, just today it was reported that former Olympic gold medalist and Shujin Academy gym teacher Suguru Kamoshida was found dead in police custody," The host shifted as if he were uncomfortable. "Akechi-san, if I may have your take on the situation please as someone who works closely with police."

"Of course," Akechi began. "It is absolutely unacceptable that a suspect in police custody died. We in law enforcement are supposed to serve and protect. This includes suspects awaiting trial. Please, don't get me wrong. Suguru Kamoshida was alleged to have committed many atrocious acts, including assault, battery, and rape. However, he had not yet been tried and convicted. His case was still pending when he committed suicide."

"Akechi-san, do you suspect the Phantom Thieves have anything to do with Suguru Kamoshida's death," the host pressed.

"No. His death does not fit their modus operandi," Akechi continued. "I do not wish to disturb you with the details, but the scene was...gruesome. His death was not quick or painless. The police are trying to work out the why and how. I myself am having trouble piecing this puzzle together."

"Akechi-san, I commend your tenacity and work ethic, but don't beat yourself up for not solving this in a day," Shido interjected. "If you would, please brief me on the full situation in private. I'll do what I can to allocate resources to your investigation."

"Shido-sama, you truly are a man of the people," Akechi smiled.

 _'You are so full of shit,'_ both men thought in unison.

* * *

Akira was pissed. His carefully laid plan to have his love duck out of the public light for good was ruined by none other that the "dead boy" himself.

"Son of a bitch!" Ryuji spat out his drink. "Akechi's as slippery a bastard as the cueball sitting next to him."

Akira wanted to rake his talons across the bleached blond haired boy's face, but he couldn't fault him for such an honest assessment.

"Woah, Shido looks pissed," Futaba observed. "The show's host looks like he's going to pee himself. Akechi looks fierce. The station is probably going to have to burn all of the seats in the audience."

"Why would they need to do that," Ryuji asked. He had to ask.

"Moist," Futaba replied.

* * *

They were cuddled up together on the bed. Well, more like his love was trying to cuddle up to him. Akira was still seething from organizing a major death scene, only to be told "psych" by one Goro Akechi. The boy who was supposed to "die."

"Stop squirming," Akira ordered. Unfortunately, Akechi seemed to think it was opposite day. Akira used his weight to flip the other boy on his back, pinning him beneath him. "Stop!"

"Why are you so cold all of a sudden?" Akechi snapped back.

"You ruined my plan," Akira retorted. "The idea was to get Shido off your ass by making him think you were dead. Today you sat next to him. Not only does he know you're not dead, but you challenged him in front of a live studio audience."

"Playing dead was asking too much of me and you know it," Akechi growled.

"Isn't my love enough?" Akira bared his fangs.

"No it isn't!" Akechi bared his own.

It felt like a knife had stabbed him through the chest. Akechi wrapped his arms around Akira, drawing the boy to him. Hot tears fell from his eyes.

"I'm a selfish whore. I need my audience," Akechi whispered. "With them I get to forget who am. To them I'm..."

"Goro," Akira wiped a tear from the chestnut haired boy's face. "Love..."

They melted into each other as their lips danced together. Akira let his weight settle onto his love. Akechi wrapped his legs around his, drawing them impossibly close together.

"I… I scared Shido," Akechi whispered.

"Tell me," Akira moaned.

"I showed him the investigation. The photos… All of them," Akechi breathed between kisses. "His face paled as he flipped through the photographs. I explained to him that it was likely a result of a psychotic breakdown. He looked at me. I could see the wheels turning in his head as he put the pieces together."

"Did he say anything?" Akira asked.

"He told me to contact him with anything that I wanted," Akechi replied. "I think he's hoping to buy me off now, knowing that he can't win against me in a fight."

"That's incredibly sexy," Akira murmured into the crook of his love's neck.

"Akira?"

"Hmmm,"

"I want you to make love to me," Akechi whispered. Akira sat up, allowing the brunet room to move. He lifted his shirt off of his body, throwing it idly behind him onto his work table. He then snuck his fingers under his love's shirt, lifting the garment until the collar was just above his nose. The rest of the garment binding and blinding his love, Akira peppered Akechi's pale skin with kisses. Akechi worked the rest of his shirt of, letting it fall beside them on the bed.

Akira traced his fingers over the other boy's chest, memorizing every scar that marred his porcelain skin. Skin which had too much history for a boy of seventeen. He slipped his fingers under his love's shorts, pulling them down his legs until his beautiful body was completely bare beneath him. Akechi's own hands worked his shorts down, exposing him to the cold air of his attic room.

Once naked, their bodies re-joined.

Akira fell onto his back, his lover pinning him to the bed from above. Hungry kisses rained on his neck and chest. He arched his back as Akechi's expert tongue circled around an erect nipple.

"Do you have any lube?" Akechi purred.

"Ahhhhnnn....No...sorry," Akira panted. His love groaned in obvious disappointment. Akira sat up, making Akechi scoot up until their bodies met. He gently nibbled on his love's earlobe as he began stroking them both in earnest.

Akechi met each stroke with a thrust of his hips and a moan between kisses. In no time, they had set up a rhythm. They sang in pants and moans, pressure building within them. With a deep, guttural growl Akira came. Thick, hot spurts of come landing on his and Akechi's chest. The chestnut haired boy increased his thrusts, willing his own body to climax.

They held each other for hours. Each one not wanting to disturb the other to clean up. They could wait until morning. For now, they had each other.

* * *

Tokyo was in an uproar. His assistant's phone was ringing off the hook with reports of every television in the city being hijacked by the Phantom Thieves. His own tablet blared their declaration to go after his heart. Let them.

"No, Shido-sama is not taking visitors right now," His assistant yelled. "What do you mean they're on their way here!"

The door to his office swung open with so much force it was a wonder the hinges didn't come undone. Goro Akechi strutted through his office like he owned the damn place.

"You can't be in here! Leave before I call...urk!" His assistant was silenced by his neck snapping, killing him instantly. Goro Akechi's hands cupping the man's head under his chin, which now faced his desk. The rest of his body still facing the door. The body fell to the floor with a loud thump as the boy let go.

"You know, good assistants are hard to find," Shido had to fight to keep his voice level.

"Except that you probably won't need one anymore," Akechi rebutted. "The Phantom Thieves have sent their card. How long do you think you have before you start vomiting all of your secrets?"

"I'm prepared for them," Shido retorted. "I have measures in place"

"You know...If you had just done things a little differently seventeen years ago, none of this would have happened," Akechi mused. "The Phantom Thieves wouldn't have known about your scheme, and I would be sitting here under a different pretext."

"I'll humor you," Shido waved for him to continue.

"Ever since I could remember, I've daydreamed about gloating over you as you lay in a pool of blood," The boy began. "I've imagined countless different way to kill you. It was always hard to settle on one. Of course I had to get to you first. That took time, patience, and a lot of pain. My ability to enter the metaverse certainly made things much easier. I finally had a little bit of leverage to bargain for a promotion."

"So, you've had a grudge against me since you were little because I didn't sign off on funding for your music program," Shido mocked. "Boo hoo kid."

"A few days ago, you asked me to contact you if there was anything I wanted," Akechi's voice was cool, betraying none of the rage that festered within him. "I want to stop dreaming about my mother's face exploding into a rain of blood, bone, and brain matter. I see her every night. The day she killed herself, she put a gun in her mouth and pulled the trigger. She made sure to use a high caliber. She wanted her death to be messy. She waited until I entered the room, so I could watch."

"What does her committing suicide have to do with me?" Shido asked, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer.

"Because you fucked her without putting a ring on it," Akechi growled. "Funny thing is, you didn't need to love her to marry her. You could have used her and me to promote yourself as a family man. It wouldn't have mattered if you cared or not."

"She could have just gotten the abortion like I told her to," Shido countered remembering the woman the boy spoke of. 

"With what money? You didn't exactly put your money where your mouth was," Akechi laughed. "After her death, I got shuffled off into foster care. I never stayed in a place too long. Especially when my guardians would start having accidents. Some of them were unfortunately fatal. Before I turned fifteen, I whored myself out to the Yakuza. I had discovered that you were relying on them for a variety of services, so what better way to get my foot in the door without having to commit as a gang member."

"So why do you think me marrying your mother would have made a difference," Shido's voice was flat.

"I'm a monster. I mean, look who I get it from," Akechi gestured to Shido. "You could have capitalized on that so easy. I still would have killed for you. Neither one of us would have had to worry about the stigma of me being a bastard. Plus, it would have been more pleasant than sucking off half of a crime syndicate. But, reward doesn't come without risk or sacrifice."

"So, you're here now. Have you decided how you're going to kill me?" Shido leaned back in his seat.

"Well, I did promise that I'd let the Phantom Thieves have a shot at your treasure," Akechi stated with a smile. "I know. It's seems to go against everything I've just said about sacrifice and pain, etcetera. However, I am a whore, and a little flattery does go a long way with me. Now, I'll be fair. I'll give you a choice. Either you let them take your heart, or I induce a psychotic breakdown. One way or another you will not walk out of this office the way you are now. And, don't bother calling your security detail. They won't come."

Shido removed his hand from the button under his desk. He had thought he had caught the boy bluffing, but Akechi had turned the tables on him so masterfully. The older man wasn't sure if he should be annoyed about his plans going awry or proud that his own flesh and blood had him backed into a corner.

“How about neither?” Shido pulls out a gun and fires it almost before Akechi could move. Akechi shifts just enough that the bullet clips his arm. He sniffs, “I liked that shirt.”

Before Shido can do anything more, Akechi is already at his side with his wrist held tightly in his hand. He could feel bones break as the boy squeezed down. His fingers loosened their grip and the gun fell to the floor.

“Now now, let’s not be hasty with our decision,” Akechi purred. “Perhaps a demonstration of what I can do. Let’s start with what I see every night when I close my eyes then. It’s been awhile since you’ve seen her.”

* * *

The ship listed to port, causing Akira and the other thieves to stumble. The boat was threatening to capsize as Shido's shadow thrashed wildly on the deck. The lifeboat is thankfully within reach. 

“No, get out of my head you brat!” The shadow raged. Akira knew Akechi was working a number on him. He growled as he began helping his team into the lifeboat. He pulled the lever to release the ropes, but the boat didn’t budge.

“Shit, it’s stuck,” Akira snarled.

“There should be a master switch, let me get to it. I’m the fastest one here,” Ryuji suggests. He noticed the main switch about fifty meters away near the aft of the ship. “Look, it’s just a few meters away.”

“That’s more than a few meters, Ryuji. No, the chances of you surviving are pretty much zero. You’ve trusted me this far, just trust me a little longer.” Akira climbed out of the boat running at breakneck speed to the back of the ship. The ship listed dangerously to its side, causing him to lose his footing. With a burst of strength, he lept into the air. His hand made contact with the switch, releasing the lifeboat with his team mates. The ship listed further, and he fell into the water below. Fortunately, he had the forethought to buy a waterproof case for his phone as it certainly came in useful. He activated the meta-nav as the ship began to settle on top of him.

Akira dropped down from a nearby light post, clothes soaking wet from his brief dip in the ocean that was Japan in Shido’s mind. 

As he rose to his feet, he’s met by Ryuji’s angry face as the boy’s fist connected with his face.

“I could have done it!” Ryuji yells. Akira is unfazed by the punch. It hardly hurt, but it doesn’t quell the rage from Ryuji’s audacity. 

“That’s the only free shot you’re getting.” Akira voice is flat as he began to wring the water out of his shirt.


	4. Chapter 4

"I want you to turn yourself into the police," Sae wasn't lying when she said she would be blunt.

"What?" Akira's eyes widened.

"I need your testimony if I'm going to be able to tie all of Shido's crimes to him," Sae admitted. "Unfortunately, with your current record, you'd be sent to Juvenile Hall and placed in solitary confinement. Though the public hails you as heroes, the police and justice department will feel like they need to save face. By arresting you..."

"I'm just another criminal," Akira finished. "All because the police have a little egg on their face."

"Unfortunately, yes," Sae turned away. "I can guarantee that the police won't go after your teammates. Akechi is denying everything and I don't have the physical evidence to have him arrested."

"He was Shido's victim as much, if not more than anyone else," Akira ruffled his snow covered hair.

"Do you know how Akechi caused the breakdowns?" Sae asked. Akira had to admire her persistence. Then again, she wasn't a top prosecutor for her looks. Sae Niijima was an ambitious and intelligent woman. A woman worthy of immortality, but that would be for someone else. He knew a few vampires who would love the silver haired prosecutor. Iwai needed a new chess partner. He idly wondered how Niijima would be with children.

"Unfortunately, I don't. It might not have ultimately been him," Akira bullshitted. "Akechi wanted revenge on Shido. Yet, he wasn't able to get to him. Whether that be here in reality or the metaverse. Though I wouldn't worry about the breakdowns now. Without the metaverse, none of us can call our personae. That means the perp shouldn't be able to either. It would just be a matter of time and dedication before you caught him Niijima-san."

"You flatter me, Kurusu-kun," Sae blushed just a little bit.

"Sae, if there's a crime Shido committed that isn't tied to the metaverse...Could I..." Akira had trouble forming the words. Solitary confinement wasn't pleasant for a human. It would be hell for a vampire. No blood for who knows how long...

"I suppose...it's possible. It would depend on the charge," Sae posited.

"Considering everything he's done and his conspirators' have done, I'm sure there are actual murders connected to him that weren't committed via the metaverse," Akira suggested. "Give me a chance to find someone who knows something. Give me three days."

"Okay. Three days," Sae agreed.

"Thanks," Akira smiled as Sae walked away, fading into the crowd. With a brush of his thumb, his phone screen lit up. He sifted through the phone numbers in his contacts, finding the one he needed. The phone rang twice before a man's voice greeted him.

"Find me a murder connected to Shido that doesn't involve the metaverse," Akira ordered.

"Yes master," the man acknowledged before the line went dead.

* * *

"The taste lingers, doesn't it?" Akechi whispered in his ear. "That was just one. You're lucky that one washed himself. I've had clients that made French cheese smell like a bouquet of flowers."

A sob escaped Shido's throat. The boy sitting in front of him... The images he forced onto him...

"You're probably wondering why you feel the way you do. Especially since I told you I was, in part willing," Akechi cooed. "The truth is they were still revolting. Most of them anyway. There were a few who even taught me how to genuinely enjoy it because it helped them get off."

Akechi sauntered over to the pathetic man curled up on his cell bed. He smoothed the sweat off of his bald head with a taloned hand. Shido shivered beneath him.

"Let's change the scenery a little bit. Instead of being me, let's put you in the role of Takeshi-san," Akechi suggested." Takeshi-san had a big heart and had no qualms about taking unwanted children. He wanted us alright...well, more like the money he got from the government. The children rarely saw a dime. Our clothes were ill fitting and our food rotten. Perhaps if he had not skimped on supplies we needed for school, I might not have accidentally mistaken rat poison for sugar."

* * *

The courtroom was packed. Sae sat in the pews behind the prosecution table. This time, her colleague would take the case. As high profile as it was, and as much as taking down Masayoshi Shido would be a boon to her career, it would be unethical for her to prosecute the man on the charge at hand. Murder. Specifically, the murder of Hoshi Niijima, her father.

The man looked small. He kept his head down, never facing the judge, or anyone for that fact. His lawyer did most of the talking. When his plea was entered, it was his lawyer that spoke instead of him. Gone was the arrogance. The megalomaniac was as timid as a door mouse.

Many witnesses came forward. Most to speak in Shido's favor.

Sae noticed the nervous fidget after the second witness. By the fourth, Shido was tearing paper into small pieces on the defense table. Sae could swear she hear teeth cracking under the pressure of his clenched jaw by the seventh witness.

"Ooe-san, can you please describe for this court the defendant?" Shido's lawyer asked for the ninth time.

"The defendant is a good man, I assure you," Ooe began. "He has the nation's best interests at heart..."

"Lies! ALL LIES!" Shido screamed as he slammed his hands on the hardwood table. The judge demanded order. Shido's poor lawyer tried to get his client under control. Sae jumped out of her seat when Shido grabbed his lawyer's expensive, fountain pen and shoved it through the man's eye.

Screams from frantic people filled the courtroom. The doors had been locked to prevent unwanted press from gaining access to the high profile case, but now those doors sealed them in the room like a trap. The berserk former Prime Minister broke his chair, gaining a sharp piece of wood with which he stabbed or bludgeoned anyone unfortunate enough to be caught within arms reach. Security had their guns drawn on him but with so many people, they couldn't shoot him without the risk of hitting anyone else. Unfortunately, their hesitation cost more people their lives.

Sae dove for the gun of an officer who had fallen to Shido's rage. The man had his head split open like a cantaloup under a sledgehammer. Eight bullets to the chest and head ended Shido's reign of terror, permanently.

* * *

"Former upcoming Prime Minister Masayoshi Shido's trial devolved into chaos yesterday when the former minister attacked several people in the courtroom. The list of casualties has expanded to fourteen people with at least nine more in serious condition. Polititian Shido's rampage was stopped when prosecutor, Sae Niijima, who had recused herself from the case, shot him with a gun from a fallen officer. Niijima-san is not being charged with any crimes." The News Anchor reported.

"This might seem old of me but I can't believe they're televising something like that," Sojiro clicked the remote for the television. "I'm heading home for the night."

"Alright, Boss," Akira finished drying the dish in his hand. "I'll close up and clean up."

"Thanks kid," Sojiro grabbed his hat and cigarettes. Akira followed him to the door to lock it up. Once the sign was flipped, he finished cleaning before hurrying up to his room. The weight of the bottle he picked up earlier today felt heavy in his pocket.

Screams could be heard coming from the phone Goro was holding. The young man's attention fully focused on the carnage playing out on the screen.

"Who knew Sae was such a good shot, huh?" Akira attempted to make light conversation.

"Indeed," Goro hit the power button to his phone, placing it on the shelf. He sat up to give Akira room on the bed to sit. "Not a single shot missed. Perhaps if she had been armed the whole time... Well... What's important is that he and his conspirators are gone. Japan can live on in peace."

"You are so full of shit," Akira smirked, plopping down next to the chestnut haired boy. The bed shifted under his weight, causing the other boy to lean into him.

"But you love me for it," Goro traced his hand up Akira's thigh, grasping firmly onto the erection hiding in his pants. "Or, at least, you find it to be a massive turn on."

"It's a little bit of both actually," Akira kissed his love as he moved to kneel before the other boy. He spread Goro's legs, massaging his inner thighs "I want you to be in charge tonight."

"Really?" Goro's breath hitched in his throat.

"Use me," Akira begged. "You've had others control you for your entire life. Tonight, I want you to control me. Don't worry about hurting me. I can take quite a bit."

Goro ran his fingers through his hair. Akira's hands were still on his legs. His thumbs massaging circles near his strained erection.

"Remember how hard you got when you shot the officer guarding me? When you pointed that same gun at me?" Akira purred. "How you wanted to fuck my face after you put a bullet in my head? I could smell your arousal. Knowing the monster you are, I could only imagine the dirty thoughts running through your brain. Only to be confirmed when you got home later that night and jacked off furiously."

"You were watching me?" Goro shuddered.

"I didn't want to stay too long in the morgue," Akira confessed. "As soon as I had my meal, I followed you home. I was under your bed while you fucked yourself silly. I couldn't help but beat off myself. The noises you were making were soooo hot. Tell me... How does your cum taste?"

"Considering my... Extensive palette, I would highly recommend it," Goro moaned. "Though, I must say, considering how long we've been dating, so to speak, I'm disappointed that I have yet to taste you."

Akira stood as he removed his jacket and shirt. Goro wasn't so patient. He deftly undid Akira's pants, pulling the zipper down. The moment Akira's dick was free, it was in his mouth. Salty pre-cum coated his tongue as he hollowed his cheeks and began to suck. Akira's hands were in his hair, pulling him away gently.

"Hey, this is about you," Akira panted.

"Maybe I want your cock shoved down my throat," Goro gave the organ a few strokes. "It felt really good there. You taste soooo good."

Akira brushed Goro's hands away, roughly lifting the other boy's shirt over his head.

"Legs up!" Akira ordered as he all but ripped Goro's pants and shorts off of his body. His newly freed cock slapping onto his abdomen, leaving a pool of pre-cum behind. "Scoot onto the bed."

"I thought I was supposed to be in control tonight," Goro maneuvered himself onto the bed. Akira climbed over him, slapping Goro's face with his cock while he gave the other boy a few strokes with his hand.

"Don't be a smart ass. This way we both get what we want," Akira gave no room for argument as he engulfed the other boy with his mouth. His hand stroked Goro vigorously while he suckled on the head. Goro felt so good under him. He could tell he was throat deep in the other boy again. Goro's moans reverberating through him, causing him to whimper. Goro was way too good at this.

Akira cried out when his orgasm snuck up on him. Goro still had him completely in his mouth, draining the cum out of his cock. He growled, when the other boy gave his thigh a playful nip.

"Delicious," Goro smirked. "Sit up!"

Akira did as he was ordered, gleefully anticipating Goro's next order. His love moved himself off of the bed to stand with his cock level with his face. Though no word was said, Akira knew what Goro wanted. He opened his mouth wide, letting his love slip roughly down his throat. Goro thrust his hips forcefully into his face. If he had need to breath, the pace would have been a problem. Instead he found himself getting hard again as Goro pounded into the back of his throat. He hollowed his cheeks to make his mouth a more intimate space for his love.

"You're right. I was imagining this in the interrogation room," Goro panted, threading his fingers in Akira's hair. "I really wanted to watch you choke on my cock while you sat in that chair, handcuffed and helpless. That officer being there killed that idea. I don't like voyeurs. The gunshot also didn't give us the time."

Goro grunted as he spent himself into Akira's throat. The Leader of the Phantom Thieves swallowed eagerly. When his love pulled out, he could feel a thread of saliva and cum stretch out between them.

"Mmmnnnn, you taste amazing. What would you have done when you found out I enjoyed having your cock fill my throat? I probably would have blown a load in my school pants." Akira moaned as he stroked himself. "To be honest, I probably would have lost myself and bent you over the table. Would you enjoy having my cock inside of you? Ramming into that tight hole of yours as you stared at us through the reflection in the one way mirror."

"Curious, considering I would have thought that it would be me fucking your hole, while you lay prostrate on the ground. Your hands still cuffed helplessly behind your back as I abused your ass. Maybe I would have been generous to gift you with a stroke or two of your own hard cock," Akechi mused, stroking himself back to hardness. "Of course, I had no way of knowing at the time you could have overpowered me."

"Do you want to fuck me?" Akira licked Goro's near hardened length then sucking gently on its base.

"Yes," Goro hissed.

"There's lube in my pants pocket," Akira purred. He sat back on his elbows, making sure his butt was just hanging off of the bed for Goro. His legs spread wide for his love. Goro found the bottle, pouring a generous stream on his cock and in his hand. His eyes fluttered as he coated himself liberally. He placed himself between Akira's legs, pressing two fingers into his tight ring.

"You don't need to prepare me love," Akira purred.

"That's not exactly what I'm doing," Goro smirked as he gave the boy a few strokes with his other hand. He curled his fingers in just the right spot, causing Akira to cry out as he orgasmed again. His cum shot onto his chest, neck, and face. "How do you taste?"

"Hooohhhh," Akira couldn't think straight as his body shook from the intensity. "Haaaaahh, wha?"

"I want you nice and sensitive before I fuck you senseless," Goro buried his cock deep into Akira, causing him to cry out again.

Goro held Akira’s arms down as he pounded into him. His body shaking from overstimulation, yet his hips eagerly matching his love's tempo. Each thrust made him cry out loudly. His love was merciless, lifting his hand from his arm only to stroke him along with each thrust. Akira came again and again, choking on his cries each time his body shuddered from each painful orgasm. His cock was raw from the endless stroking, but whenever he would get soft, his love would kiss him. Feeding him just enough blood to get him hard again.

Goro's thrusts began to lose rhythm, telling Akira that he was finally close to his own climax. He wanted his love's experience to be just as amazing as his own. He wrapped his legs around Goro's waist, pulling him close into him. He buried his lips in the crook of his lover's neck before biting down. Goro's body quaked above him. His love screaming into his shoulder and bed as his body was bathed in pleasure. The taste of blood had him screaming as well as his own body orgasmed for the umpteenth time. Akira's limbs lost strength, letting go of the other boy. Goro shuddered on top of him, too weak to pick himself up.

"Ohh...ahhh... I... I...didn't know I could feel anything like that," Goro panted.

"I didn...didn't think I could either," Akira breathed as he slowly wrapped his arms around his love. "Goro... I..."

Goro managed to lift his head enough to kiss him, the taste of blood and cum on his tongue. His cock threatened to stir, but Akira didn't think he had anymore stamina.

"Akira?" Gora breathed, breaking their kiss.

"I… I love you," He finally admitted. He gently brushed newly formed tears away from his lovers eyes.

"I love you too," Goro whispered before settling back on top of him. They would clean up in the morning before Sojiro opened up shop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is the last chapter of this tale. Though it is possible sequels may appear. Please let us know in the comments below if you'd like to see more of these two. :)
> 
> \--Celanna192


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the second to last chapter everyone. I had to break it up because it was getting long. 13 pages. Next will be the epilogue and final chapter in this story. Let me know in the comments below if you'd like to see more. <3

He packed up the last of his clothing into his the box, sealing it and placing it by the others filled with his various possessions. Goro was doing the same, though he only needed one box for his items. Morgana sat uselessly on the desk, watching them work as cats did. Akira smiled. The last three months had been blissfully peaceful.

Goro had officially moved in with him after Shido's death. Akira had made one of his thralls take the fall for the psychotic breakdowns and shutdowns, leaving his love legally off the hook. His fellow thieves weren't happy with it, but there wasn't much they could do about it. Goro had attempted to garner sympathy from the thieves by opening up about his past. The best he got was pity. Futaba didn't trust Goro, or himself as far as she could throw them. Though that was mostly his fault since he forgot to turn off her listening devices the night of Shido's death. It had cost him a lot of yen to buy her silence. She was also the only human, non-thrall, who knew of his past. She also hadn't forgiven Goro for her mother's death. His love was a good sport about it and told her he didn't expect that of her.

Akira giggled idly.

"What's so funny?" Goro asked as he neatly folded his underwear.

"I'm just thinking of the time you offered to let Futaba stab you with a kitchen knife in your effort to make amends," Akira smiled as he circled his arms around his love's waist. "I'm still surprised she didn't take you up on it."

"Hmm, how do we know she and the other's aren't planning to drive us into the mountains to dispose of us?" Goro mumbled into a kiss.

"Hey, don't make this gross," Morgana complained from his perch on the desk.

"We could be doing a lot more," Goro teased, but broke up their kiss nonetheless. Morgana was actually pleasant to be around, despite Akira's antagonism towards the cat. Goro's only issue with the cat was his sleep schedule. "What time are we leaving tomorrow?"

"Everyone is supposed to be here around nine," Akira sat on the bed, pulling his love onto his lap. "Haru is renting a van. It'll take us about four hours to get home."

"Unless, of course we take that detour into the mountains," Goro nuzzled into him.

"That's it, I'm heading over to Futaba's," Morgana moved from his spot to the window. "I'll be back tomorrow morning."

"Alright, see you in the morning," Akira acknowledged, too preoccupied in his love to notice the cat huff before jumping out of the window. The raven haired boy drew his love into a kiss, shifting his weight until they were both lying on the bed. They wrapped themselves in each other.

"Goro?" Akira wiped a stray tear from his love's eyes.

"It's nothing... I... I never once thought that I could ever have something good in my life," Goro smiled. "I have you. I'll have parents. I have a family who cares."

"I love you," Akira kissed his love, wiping away another tear.

"I love you," Goro murmured back.

* * *

The tension in the van was palpable, leading Akira to think that having the whole gang see them home was a mistake. Small talk was nonexistent. Ryuji would constantly look back at him and his love, as if expecting that either one of them would start murdering the other passengers any minute. Goro was pretending to sleep in order to relieve some of the tension. He would squeeze Akira's hand every now and then to let him know he was still awake. The way the other thieves were treating Akira bothered him. He squeezed back, rubbing his thumb over his love's hand. The gesture didn't go unnoticed by Ryuji.

Akira was pissed by the time they got to his house. Between Ryuji's staring, Futaba's glaring, and everyone else's avoidance, he had just about had it with the Phantom Thieves. Normally, he wouldn't allow behavior like that to go unpunished, but they were expected back. He and his love would be suspects one and two if anything happened to any of them.

Goro gave his hand a squeeze, but it only made him seethe more. They had three months to get used to Goro and his relationship. His love had even opened himself up and bared his entire past to them... Well, a watered down version, but that was beside the point.

His "parents" greeted them warmly, then gave them space. Without a word, he began to cart his and Goro's things to his room. He didn't expect anyone else to help or to socialize, so he didn't bother asking.

Things didn't improve as the day went on.

Goro had made sure to stay away from the refreshments Akira's parents had provided just in case anyone wanted to accuse him of trying to poison the group. Though, they were doing a fine job of it mentally today. Ryuji being one of the worst about it. Makoto, Ann, and Haru weren't much better though. He could at least understand Futaba's ire since she knew the situation.

Akira's parents left for the store a few hours later, leaving the group alone. Akira's mood was absolutely shot. Goro just hoped that he wouldn't do something stupid.

The Thieves had gathered in the living room, while he silently walked through the kitchen, memorizing what a kitchen should actually look like. What a home with parents should look like. Goro brushed his hand against the wooden dining room table. Four chairs of the same wood were tucked under.

"A table set for four," Goro turned to find Yusuke standing near the kitchen door. "A welcoming sign, wouldn't you say?"

"Yeah..." Goro mumbled. "I've never... Seen so many chairs around a table before... Well, a kitchen table."

"It doesn't bother you that the scene is fake?" Yusuke asked. Goro's mind fitted the puzzle together immediately.

"How long? For you I mean," Goro whispered. "You can't be much older than me."

"About a year and a half ago," Yusuke answered, eyes shimmering sapphire for the briefest second. "A patron of Madarame saw through his charade. He turned me with the intention that I permanently end Madarame and I take my rightful place as the artist I am. I couldn't do it. My sense of..."

"You felt that you owed him everything," Goro finished. "I can't say I have ever felt similar. Perhaps because I'm selfish in nature."

"I tried starving myself," Yusuke continued, moving closer to the smaller boy so he didn't have to raise his voice. "I didn't want to hurt anyone at first, but... I couldn't resist forever. It's not so difficult for me anymore, but I still don't eat as much as I probably should."

"It kind of shows," Goro gave a sad smile. "It's hard to function when hungry. I was still mortal when I learned that lesson."

'How did you do it?" Yusuke didn't need to elaborate.

"What I've done and what I've had done to me over my life are too much for anyone to bear. Anyone but me anyway. Loki allowed me to share my past with anyone. I could even choose the roles they played. Like a fucked up life simulation except everything actually happened," Goro explained. "I am truly sorry that you got hit with what you did. I didn't want you to experience that. I had another memory in mind for you, though, to be honest it isn't much better."

"You've already apologized for that," Yusuke replied tucking a strand of hair behind Goro's ear. "I saw what I did because I attempted to calm you while you were focused on Makoto. Like you, I can alter people's minds, but my ability comes from my passion as an artist instead of my past. I can alter someone's emotions ranging anywhere from intense depression to orgasmic bliss."

"The later must be rather useful while dating," Goro quipped, as soft smile gracing his lips.

"It would be, if I dated. However, it's also useful in distracting people from me draining them dry," Yusuke's banter lightened. "I can also see auras. That's actually how I change people's emotions. I change the color of their auras. I tried it once with a group at school during an unchaperoned studio session... It was interesting to say the least. My teacher always wondered where I got the reference for my bacchanal piece."

"It is rather amusing to picture you sketching, while dressed in your neatly pressed school uniform, while your classmates are fucking themselves silly," Goro let a small chuckle escape his throat. "By the way, is your wolf form a fox?

"Actually, it is," The taller boy smiled, though it faded just as quick. "You're still hurting."

"What?"

"Ever since I was turned, I could see your aura. Even through the television," Yusuke explained. "I've seen other people in pain, but you... Your pain runs deep. I believe you when you say it's your past that causes psychotic breakdowns. Your aura is... It lends weight to your explanation. I noticed it lighten up a little at the end of November, and even more after Shido's death. Yet, most of the black is still there."

"How did Akira not notice you?" Goro leaned against the table. "I can see how I missed it, seeing as I'm so young."

"I can mask my own aura as well," The taller boy continued. "To be honest, I didn't notice Akira until after he turned you. His aura changed dramatically. Even with us around, he was always lonely. That changed suddenly at the end of November. It didn't take much to figure out why."

"All I'm saying is that Akechi must be really good. Otherwise, why bother keeping him around?" Ryuji's voice bellowed from the living room. A loud bang of something heavy dropping, then footsteps from the floor above moving quickly towards the stairs told Goro that Akira heard the blond's comment.

"Sakamoto, you idiot," Goro sighed. He ran towards the living room, in time to see Akira descend the stairs. The glass vase sitting on the table at the base flew from his hand, shattering into fine, powdery glass inches away from Sakamoto's head.

"Akira, no! Don't!" He ran to the raven hair boy, grabbing him before he could lunge for the blond. Akira's fangs were out, desperately wanting to snap down on the idiot's neck. Goro was having trouble holding him back. The girls were yelling and screaming behind him as Akira growled and roared in front of him. His face contorted into a monstrous snarl. His eyes were blood red. "Akira, please stop! It's okay!"

Yusuke grabbed Akira from behind, taking some of the load off of Goro. The change was noticeable immediately. Akira's face began to resemble the human boy everyone thought he was, though there were many moments where it would go back to the vicious snarl.

"I can't hold him," Yusuke panted, the exertion of trying to calm the boy taking its toll.

"Akira, love..." Goro drew Akira into a kiss, distracting him long enough for Yusuke to completely calm him. "It's okay. I'm okay, it's okay."

"No it's not okay," Akira sobbed into his shoulder. "I'm tired of everyone treating your like shit."

"Love, it's going to happen," Goro soothed, brushing his fingers through those midnight locks. "You can't change how people feel about me."

"WHAT THE FUCK!" Ryuji yelled. Goro turned to look at the mortal boy, who had pissed himself in fright. Makoto, and Ann were at the door. The blonde desperately trying to get it to open. Futaba and Morgana were perched on the living room couch. One eating pocky as if she was watching a movie and the other laughing his furry little butt off. Haru was nowhere to be found. Straining his ears, he could hear her in the bathroom upstairs. Unaware of what had just happened.

"WHY WON'T THE DOOR OPEN!" Ann screamed, still desperately trying to force the door open.

"Because we're trapped," Futaba took another bite of her pocky. "Vampires can force doors closed like poltergeists can."

"LET US OUT! SOMEBODY HELP US!" Makoto screamed as she pounded on the front door.

"You handle them, I'll handle him," Goro suggested to Yusuke. "We're going to get nowhere with them screaming and Akira a mess."

"You're right," Yusuke sighed. "Also, my apologies. I didn't mean to go so far. I was attempting to get him into a tranquil state."

"It's okay," Goro assured, guiding the sobbing raven haired boy to his feet. "I think he's needed to get this out for awhile."

It took him and Yusuke a little over an hour to get all parties settled down. Akira, Yusuke, and he found themselves being stared down by the mortal members of the Phantom Thieves. Ryuji had bathed and changed. Ann and Makoto sat practically in each other's lap. Futaba quietly tapped away on her handheld game system, with Morgana quietly sitting in her lap. Haru glared at him as if the whole thing was his fault.

"Just to get this out of the way, the three of us are vampires," Goro started. "It would probably be best if we told our own stories. Akira, love?"

"Why bother when you're probably going to kill us anyway?" Ryuji snapped.

"I would suggest you rein in your comments, or would you prefer I do it for you?" Yusuke's tone was cold. "Your behavior this entire trip has been rather appalling."

"That's a little hard to do while I'm sitting in a room with a bunch of murderers!" Ryuji retorted, crossing his arms over the hoodie he had to borrow.

"Ryuji's right. I can't trust you anymore, and I've never trusted him," Haru pointed at Goro. "Do you plan to keep us here as snacks? Enslave us?"

"Just shut up!" Akira snapped. Goro drew the raven haired boy to him, brushing his fingers through his hair. "You don't even fucking know what we've been through."

"Akira... it'll be okay," Goro kissed Akira's forehead as the other boy choked on a sob.

"Sorry, it might take a while for it to wear off," Yusuke apologized. The tall boy turned to the other Phantom Thieves. "Now, if you'll kindly keep your comments to yourselves until afterwards, I'll begin. Last year at a private gallery viewing, a patron of Madarame's approached me. I had assured him that Madarame was the master behind the artwork as I had always done, but this patron saw through me. He petitioned Madarame for a private audience with me. Without my consent, he turned me. He wanted me to dispose of Madarame, making it look like the man killed himself. His reasoning was that the true artist should be the master... I... I couldn't do it. For so long I had felt indebted to Madarame, I couldn't... I was glad when I saw you at the train station. I had already heard about what you did to your gym teacher. I believed that you could do the same with Madarame and spare me getting my hands dirty. I wasn't wrong."

"You used us!" Ann screeched.

"How were you able to tell that they were the Phantom Thieves?" Makoto asked. "It took me months to figure you out."

"I can see your auras," Yusuke explained. "Not just yours, but everyone’s. I can also manipulate what you're feeling by changing the color of your aura. I played the fool and pretended to be unreceptive to your assistance so that I could gain you access to Madarame."

"So you came up with the idea to have me model naked," Ann spat from her perch on Makoto's lap. "Pervert!"

"I assure you, if I wanted to see you naked, I could have had you rip your clothes off with no reservations," Yusuke continued. "I knew you would be apprehensive about the modeling job. I counted on it. The end result was ultimately the one I wanted. Where Madarame confessed his crimes and went to prison."

"So, you've managed not to kill anyone?" Haru asked, hopeful.

"Make no mistake, I've had to eat," Yusuke answered. "My relationship with Madarame was…” He pauses, “Complicated. That didn't go away after becoming a vampire."

"We don't have to kill to eat," Akira piped up. "It's really hard not to though. It's harder the younger you are because the body needs more. It's not dissimilar from mortal children needing to eat a lot of food because they're growing."

"It also doesn't help that the victim all but begs for it," Goro added. "I did. Even though the bite itself hurt, the process of being drained felt really good."

"I can attest to that as well," Yusuke continued. "Though the process of turning was less than pleasant."

"I was dying from radiation poisoning, so I don't fucking remember," Akira volunteered, voice hoarse from crying.

"Radiation poisoning?" Ryuji asked, his voice calm for once that day.

"I got caught up in the bomb that hit Nagasaki-shi. I lost my entire family that day. They were lucky in that they died instantly. I died over the span of several weeks," Akira explained. "I was trying to get water one night and passed out. I woke up a vampire."

"And you?" Haru pointed to the chestnut haired boy.

"I'm his piece of hot ass," Goro lightly nudged Akira.

"Did you really have to say it like that?" Morgana finally piped up. "You two are gross."

"Ann is dating Makoto," Goro retaliated.

"LADY ANN!" Morgana whined. "My heart is breaking."

"It seems that Ann does prefer pussy, just not yours," Yusuke added more fire to the burn.

"That's it! I'm done! I'm going to bed," Akira rose to his feet.

"I'll tuck you in," Goro circled his arm around the raven haired boy's waist. "I'm yelling at all of you when I get back."

"Bring some ointment for Morgana before you do," Ryuji couldn't suppress a snicker. Goro merely rolled his eyes as he and Akira ascended the stairs. The other Thieves continued to bicker over Morgana's crush and Ann's and Makoto's love lives, but he drowned them out. Akira continued to sob as they cleared the last step. Goro continued to guide Akira to his room, where they both collapsed on his full sized western bed.

"You've been dreading today for a while, huh?" It wasn't really a question. "You care about them more than you led me to believe."

"I guess. I just wish all of you would get along," Akira sniffed into his pillow. "Fucking Yusuke's a vampire and I didn't know it. I always pride myself on my years of experience letting me outsmart people, but he fucking played me like a fiddle."

"Yusuke was in a desperate situation and needed to find a way out," Goro explained. "He just happened to have an ability that let him do it."

"Also, how do you two have extra abilities? I don't have anything." Akira shot.

"I'm sure you have something. Maybe you haven't had to use it yet, so you don't know it's there." Goro snuggled into the other boy, planting soft kisses on his neck. "Besides, would you really want what I have? Yusuke's ability probably had a lot to do with how Madarame raised him. Ever noticed how he has a good understanding of mood and emotion, but only from an objective standpoint? I think Madarame encouraged him and I use the term lightly, to be in touch with emotions, but only in the context of art. Never between people. He reveres his mother, but I've never heard him say he loved her. I don't think he can yet."

"I'm not sure I want to know why you think that," Akira rolled over to face his love. "I take it he said something."

"Yeah," Goro breathed into Akira's lips before planting a soft kiss on them. "That and the burn he gave Morgana."

"That surprised the hell out me," Akira admitted snuggling into his love's chest. "Don't go..."

"I want to set them straight," Goro kissed the top of Akira's head. "I'll be back up in a little bit."

He reluctantly climbed out of bed and tucked the blankets over Akira's shoulders. With one last kiss on his forehead, he left to face the mob downstairs. First he had to deal with the eavesdropper just outside of his room.

"For someone who tends a garden and has a general appreciation for life, you don't seem to sympathize well with other people who are in difficult situations," Goro addressed Haru, whom he found sitting just outside in the hallway.

"I don't sympathize with murderers," Haru shot back.

"I don't even know why you cared about the fucker," Goro's voice turned to ice. "He certainly didn't care about you. Sure, your father, if you can call him that, bought you nice things, but that was just to keep up appearances. In the end, he was basically grooming you to be sold off into sexual slavery."

"Don't talk about my father that way," Haru hissed, standing to her full, unimposing height.

"The only reason you're not choking on Sugimura's dick right now is because I burned the contract that sold you off to him," Goro growled. "Your father had a contract that stated in the event of his death that you would be placed into Sugimura's custody. The bastard would practically own you. The Board at Okumura Foods knew of this, but when they couldn't cough up the goods, you were off the hook."

"That... That's a lie," Haru shook. Goro drew her into a hug, not caring that his shirt was being cried on for the second time that night.

"I know what it feels like to be helpless. To be whored out for the pleasure of others," He whispered. "People go insane when they see what I've gone through. When I saw that contract... I... I didn't want you to go through that. To go through what I went through."

"What about Futaba's mother," Haru sobbed, "Was she horrible too."

"She was my first hit after I awoke to Loki," Goro confessed. "She was absorbed in her work, and Futaba being illegitimate, didn't help society's views about her. Still, she was stronger than my mother. I told her that. But everyone was expendable. As long as Shido fell, everyone was expendable. Including me."

"I want you to show me," Haru broke away.

"No,"

"I can't trust your word. I need to see it to believe it," Haru demanded.

"You'll lose your mind. Shido lost his mind and went ape shit in a courtroom. Kamoshida lost his mind and ripped himself apart in his jail cell," He tried to reason.

"That's because you tortured them. I just want to see," Haru countered.

"I... fine," Goro relented.

Haru mentally prepared herself as best as she could. Flashes of images passed through her mind. A woman waiting for a toddler boy to enter her bedroom before firing a gun into her mouth. The same boy, no more than five being beaten senseless by an adult caretaker for attempting to sneak away some extra food. The boy, now fifteen, being spit roasted by a couple of Yakuza mobsters. His body covered in blood and bruises. She couldn't take anymore and threw up.

Haru realized after the images had stopped that she had thrown up all over herself and the wooden floor of Akira's hallway. Another wave of nausea hit her as she looked at Goro, the boy from the horrible images that she saw. Strong hands rushed her to the bathroom, holding her hair as she bent over the toilet bowl to empty the contents of her stomach. She was still shaking when her stomach finally settled.

"I'll see if I can find you some spare clothes. Take all the time you need to clean up. Don't worry about the floor, I'll take care of that now," Goro rubbed her back. "You are incredibly strong. No one has been able to see that much and come away intact."

"Ohhh, God that was horrible," Haru shuddered. "But it explains a lot. Whatever you do, don't do that to Futaba. I don't care if she blackmails you. Don't let her do what I did."

"I won't. I promise," Goro murmured. "I'll be back with some clothes and a towel."

"Thanks,"

Once he had clothes and a towel for Haru, he left her to shower. The floor took him no time to clean, thanks to Akira's old fashioned aesthetic for going with hardwood flooring. He went downstairs to find the Phantom Thieves, most of them anyway, sitting in awkward silence. Ann had moved off of Makoto's lap, but still sat close to her girlfriend. Morgana had wondered off somewhere else. Ryuji was giving odd glances at Yusuke. It didn't go unnoticed on him that the blond was shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

"Where's Haru?" Futaba asked, with a hint of accusation in her tone.

"She's in the shower," Goro replied, his hands still filled with vomit filled paper towels. "Let me take care of this real quick."

"What did you do?" Futaba continued, but he wasn't having it right now. Goro ignored the redhead as he walked into the kitchen. He deposited the soiled paper towels in the trash bin, then moved to the sink to clean his hands. He heard sniffling behind him as soon as he turned the faucet off. Morgana was on the table, face tucked into his paws as his little body heaved from sobbing. Fuck, when did he get to be so caring.

"Morgana?" Goro took the seat closest to the metaverse cat.

"Go away. Let me wallow in my own misery," Morgana moaned. "It's bad enough that everyone else makes fun of me, I don't need it to come from you too. Why couldn't Ann wait until I was human?"

"Morgana. I don't think it has anything to do with you being human or not," Goro treaded as lightly as he could. "Maybe she isn't into boys."

"But what about all the pictures of idols she has in her bedroom?" Morgana lifted his head out of his paws.

"Society tells us that boys are supposed to like girls and vice versa," Goro explained. "But human sexuality is a lot more nuanced than that. Quite frankly, I can never see myself with a woman. Ann probably feels similar about men. Also, Ryuji isn't as straight as he pretends to be. I noticed he was a bit stiff while glancing at Yusuke when he thought no one was looking."

"Never, Ever, use Ryuji and stiff in the same sentence ever again," Morgana demanded. Both males giggled a little bit.

"I think you'll find someone Morgana," Goro soothed as he picked up the smallest member of the Phantom Thieves. "Hell, if someone can love a monster like me, you'll have no problem. I'm not an expert, but I know Ann not reciprocating your feelings is going to hurt. But I also know that humans heal from that. You'll heal from it too."

"Thanks Akechi," Morgana purred, not realizing he was catting.

"No problem furball," Goro carried Morgana back into the living room. Haru had joined the group, though she was still pale. He placed Morgana on her lap before taking his seat back next to Yusuke.

"What did you do to her!" Futaba demanded again. The whole room's attention was on him. He remembered reveling in such attention, but now it was uncomfortable.

"I showed her some of my memories," Goro blurted out. No sense beating around the bush.

"YOU WHAT!" Makoto lunged for him, but Ann held her back.

"I asked him to," Haru interjected. "I didn't believe, couldn't believe, anything he told me. I made him show me instead. It was horrible. I can see why victims of the breakdowns went insane. How you're not a babbling mess in a psych ward right now is an outright miracle."

"I had a purpose," Goro reiterated.

"I know what you said. Everyone was expendable, including yourself. All for revenge on Shido," Haru continued.

"He's sitting right here! How is he expendable when my mother is dead?" Futaba cried, clutching a throw pillow like it was a teddy bear.

"Expendable doesn't always mean life and death," Haru explained. "I was expendable according to my father, but it didn't mean he was going to kill me. All I was good for in his eyes was snatching a son-in-law for him to pass his business onto."

"Good pun," Goro smirked.

"That was a good pun, huh?" Haru giggled a little.

"I'm confused," Ryuji shifted in his seat.

"Gallows humor," Haru offered, petting the cat in her lap as if she was a Bond villain.

"Snatch is another word for vagina," Makoto groaned, not believing where this conversation had headed.

"Getting back on track! Why did my mother have to die!" Futaba screeched.

"Shido ordered it. I obeyed. I had to play the part of a good little assassin in order to move myself closer to him," Goro starred the redheaded girl down. "Isshiki-san knew when I showed up what would happen. I still don't know how she knew about me, but she did. I was straight forward with her. I told her my plans for Shido. She told me how I could do it and make it hurt. Isshiki Wakaba told me how to cause psychotic breakdowns."

"You're lying!" Futaba cried.

"She wanted Shido to hurt," Goro continued, his eyes shining from welling tears. "She also knew I wanted him to hurt. All she did was tell me her theory, I just had to experiment. Wakaba was the most amazing person I have ever met. I wish that my... Mother had half the strength she did. Maybe I wouldn't be so messed up and none of this would have happened."

"Then Shido wouldn't have had anyone to stand against him," Yusuke reasoned. "I don't want to be cliche and say everything happens for a reason, but I can't think of a situation where the outcome would be the same. Despite our losses and pain, Shido, Okumura Kunikazu, Madarame, Kaneshiro, and even Kamoshida all had to be taken down. Without our pain to spur us on, we wouldn't have had the strength to take them on. They would still be causing pain and suffering to countless others had we not done anything."

"Or it could have been dumb luck that Shido ran into a decades old vampire and pissed him off," Goro added.

"Dumb luck merely tipped over the first domino," Yusuke continued.

"Why are you defending him?" Futaba pointed accusingly at Goro.

"Hey, I'm not defending him," Ryuji bristled in his seat. "Ann and Makoto aren't either. Unfortunately, Yusuke's right. Without the bullshit we went through, we wouldn't have become the Phantom Thieves. We took down a Great Old One who had placed his chips on Shido's number. That's something we can all rally behind right?"

"Ryuji, do you need a glass of water? I don't want you to overheat because you're thinking too much," Morgana offered.

"I deserve that, but whatever," Ryuji fidgeted. "The point is, as much as I hate to admit it, Akechi and his fucked up life were necessary to the team, just as Akira's old, stank ass running into Shido was necessary for the team's success."

"Don't call my boyfriend a stank!"

"Dude, he's almost ninety years old. That's illegal... And stank," Ryuji continued. "Kobayakawa getting a chubby over Makoto drove her to the team. Kamoshida being a douchey rapist drove Ann and me to the team. We already went over Haru and Yusuke. Futaba came to us for help, though I could never figure out why Shido would go the distance to blame her for her mother's suicide. Seriously, how does that even…?"

"Pure malice," Goro filled in the gap. "Shido could have written the death off as an accident. She and I had actually planned for it to be an accident. Wakaba would trip on the curb and fall as a car sped into her. Again, she knew I had to kill her, so I worked with her. She wanted it to be an accident so no one could be blamed for her death. In the end, Shido still managed to fuck it up."

"So, because of Shido, not you, I have chronic depression and suicidal tendencies?" Futaba asked pointedly.

"If it makes you feel any better, those goons who read that letter to your family had a little car trouble on their way back to the office. They stalled right on the railroad tracks. The car was smashed to pieces. No survivors," Goro consoled. Blank stares met his own. "I'm a monster, I know it. I pretty much revel in it at this point. So if anyone ever needs a dirty deed done, all you have to do is ask."

"Do you not even feel the slightest bit of remorse?" Ann hissed.

"I stamped that out long ago. I had to in order to live long enough to realize my goal," Goro retorted. "It would be easier if you would just accept that the three of us, me especially, are real monsters. But we're monsters worth being friends with."

* * *

He couldn't sleep. It had been hours since the Thieves' heart to heart, but it still weighed heavily in his mind. Akira stirred next to him.

Hmm, you're awake?" Akira mumbled.

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep," Goro brushed a little hair out of Akira's face. "What woke you up?"

"Ryuji wanking it next door," The raven haired boy groaned. Goro strained his ears. Ryuji was certainly panting, but he could make out faint pleas of wanting.

"I don't think Ryuji's alone," He whispered. "I think Yusuke's in there with him. Want to bust in on them?"

"Hmm, sure," Akira's cock twitched. His love pulled him out of bed and they padded over to the guest room. He bit his lip over seeing Ryuji pinned against the wall by Yusuke. Small streams of blood dripped from the puncture marks Yusuke was slowly, and agonizingly lapping from. Ryuji writhed beneath the taller boy, desperately trying to rut on him. His swollen dick still trapped in his pants. Yusuke turned towards them, irises shining a florescent blue and lips tinted red with blood. Akira moaned, his own erection standing proudly through his shorts.

"Yusuke, please tell me you're not..." Goro coughed.

"I assure you, he consented fully," Yusuke moaned into Ryuji's jaw.

"Mind if we join in?" Akira asked, rubbing his own erection through his shorts. Goro bit his own lip as he stared hungrily at the two of them.

"I don't see why not," Yusuke smiled, fangs brushing his bottom lip. "Ryuji seems to be more than agreeable as well."

Goro watched as Akira sauntered up to the pair. He pulled Ryuji roughly by the hair before lapping up the tiny rivers of blood on his neck. The blond moaned deliciously, causing his dick to throb painfully. He walked up the group, squeezing himself between Yusuke and Akira.

"Do you want to feel how good I am, Sakamoto?" Goro rubbed the flat of his hand against the blond's erection, causing the boy to whine.

"Haa, Yes," Ryuji breathed before Akira drew him into a kiss. He dropped to his knees, slipping his fingers in the blond's sweatpants. He pulled them down just enough to free his desperate cock from its prison. Without warning, he swallowed Ryuji as deeply as he could. Goro moaned, causing the blond to lose himself and cum.

"Ow," He barely heard Akira over the sound of his throat swallowing all of Ryuji's load. "Oh fuck."

"What's wrong?" He let Ryuji's dick fall from his mouth. Akira's lips were covered in blood, his own blood from the smell of it. "Oh shit."

As if in a cartoon, Ryuji seized immediately after Goro realized what had happened. The three of them held him as his body spasmed from his death throes. After a solid minute of having the blond's dick smack him in the face, mortal death finally took over. Goro, placed the poor boy's pants back on his hips, standing as the other two carried him over to the bed.

"Sorry, I guess I was a little too good," Goro breathed, earning a light glare from Yusuke.

"I'm going to blame the idiot who didn't retract his fangs before putting his mouth near a mortal's," Yusuke growled at Akira. "He was going to be my weekly meal."

"If I had know you were one of us sooner, I would have hooked you up," Akira retorted. "I have thralls and confidants all over Tokyo. Meals won't be a problem for you... or him now."

"So, who's going to tell everyone else?" Goro asked looking at his boyfriend. "They're going to be pissed."

"Fine, I will," Akira groaned. "But I'm not sparing any details."

"Of course you wouldn't since it wasn't his dick in your mouth," Goro smirked. Yusuke couldn't suppress an eye roll at the lovers' banter.


	6. Le fin.

Ryuji woke up pissed about being turned, though he ultimately forgave Akira when he apologized for it. Ryuji had always had a soft spot for the raven haired boy, vampire or not. He was the first person to believe him about Kamoshida and even allied with him to take the lecherous gym teacher down. Goro asked if he wanted a do over since he didn't really get a chance to enjoy his famous mouth. The blond had declined.

The girls were livid. Akira had been unnecessarily vivid with the details. Goro could still see Futaba's face contort in disgust as Akira explained that he accidentally cut himself kissing Ryuji because the blond bucked in response to Goro's blowjob. They left in a hurry after that conversation. As far as he knew, they still weren't speaking to the boys, not including himself. He had never really been part of the group despite Akira's best efforts. Every now and then, he would get a message from Haru asking how he was doing.

Ryuji experimented with shifting form almost immediately after the girls left. Though it took the four of them a bit to figure out that Ryuji's "wolf" was a coyote, which was curious since the coyote was only found in North and Central America. Wikipedia mentioned that the American coyote was an avid long distance runner as far as canids went, so they went with that, since Ryuji was a former member of the track team. Goro still found himself a little jealous since people actually feared coyotes. Morgana was less than thrilled about four dogs running around the house.

The four of them spent the week roaming Akira's hometown as canines. Yusuke's vixen scream was particularly handy in helping them catch a good samaritan or two in the back alleys. City dwellers seemed to have trouble telling apart a fox's howl from a woman being stabbed to death. They would also hit up the local park, howling until parents took their children home. That opened up the park to doggy soccer. Ryuji and Goro usually smoked the other two. They were both faster than Akira's pony sized wolf, and poor Yusuke more often than not got ran over by the ball. They also took time to let Yusuke sketch them for a school project he was working on.

During one of their late night runs, they sat on the merry-go-round while talking about normal teenager stuff. Though in wolf form, which reminded the former detective of the dogs playing poker painting he saw on the internet. A painting he brought up specifically to rile up the foxy artist in their group. After Yusuke's hour long rant, Akira produced one of those teen girl magazines from who knows where. They were on the topic of relationships when Ryuji finally admitted he liked guys as well as girls. Though, he seemed embarrassed by it, Yusuke and Akira were supportive. He mostly kept quiet since "healthy sexual development" and his name didn't usually occupy the same sentence. Yusuke admitted his inability to connect with people though he would like to try now that he was free from Madarame. That led to Akira not so subtly suggesting Ryuji and Yusuke hook up, which they did later that night after they returned home. Goro demanded pancakes the next morning because the two of them kept him up all night.

Despite a few sleepless nights and some awkward conversations, Goro felt a tinge of sadness when Ryuji and Yusuke finally left for home. That week had been one of the best weeks of his life.

* * *

Goro was excited about today. Today, he and Akira were going to shop for school supplies. Though a banal exercise, it marked the beginning of a new life. No Shido, no television interviews, no bullshit police investigations. All he had to be was a high school student. The prospect had him feeling practically giddy.

"Excited?" Akira threaded their fingers together.

"A bit," Goro squeezed his hand. "I'm going to have a normal day. Jeez, it sounds pathetic when I say it out loud."

The raven haired boy smiled at him as the car pulled into the next available parking spot. His new "aunt" and "uncle" bidding them farewell before going off to do their own thing. Even though in reality they were just Akira's thralls, he did give them quite a bit of freedom to live their own lives.

The day was spent looking for random stationary, pencils, and other things they would need for school. They had picked up their uniforms and textbooks from school the other day, so they were pretty much set before noon. They spent the rest of their day window shopping at various shops. Most of the afternoon had him perusing the shelves of an antique bookstore. The smell of old paper reminding him of the worlds he would escape to when reality became too much.

They ate dinner at a small cafe. It wasn't as charming as Leblanc, but it was nice and quaint. The food was pretty good, though it could never measure up to Sojiro's curry. After dinner, they enjoyed a cup of coffee and a slice of lemon cake while they waited for Akira's parents to pick them up.

Dusk had settled when the family began their trek back home.

"I never thought I would be excited for school," Goro breathed from the backseat of the sedan. "I'm so glad my popularity never got out this far. I know I've bitched about needing my fans, but... I don't know. It feels liberating not to have that expectation anymore."

"I'm glad to hear," Akira grabbed his hand and placed a gentle kiss on it. "I want you to be happy."

"I feel like I can finally be..." Goro was blinded by lights shining behind Akira. The next thing he heard was a loud crunch followed by agony as metal and glass pierced his skin.

The driver of the delivery van got out of the cab of his vehicle, surveying the damage. The sedan he hit was a total loss. The car was a mangled mess. Two adults hunched over what used to be the dashboard. The backseat took the worst of the damage having been pinned between the van and a tree. A bloody hand hung from the window at an odd angle. He could faintly see one of the boy's dead eyes staring blankly back at him. His neck twisted and broken. The driver holstered his gun. He wouldn't need it after all.

* * *

Morgana rushed to the door when he heard it creak open. It had been over a day since the family had left to get school supplies. Akira's family didn't have cable, so he couldn't check the news. Everyone's computer had been turned off too, so he was left to worry.

"What happened?!" Morgana stopped when he saw Akira and Goro, bruised and covered in blood. Goro's breathing was deep and regular, as if he was trying to prevent himself from exploding.

"Some asshole crashed into the car," Akira croaked, walking through the door with a very noticeable limp. "Goro and I are still healing from it. I hurt so much right now."

"I was supposed to start a normal life," Goro muttered, his body shaking from rage. "I'm going to kill the son of a bitch."

"Right now, we need to eat. Then we need to pack up and leave," Akira interrupted. "The parents are dead. We're supposed to be dead, so we'll have to find somewhere else to go."

Akira left Goro to steam in the living room while he gathered the blood packs from the fridge. They'd have to eat all of them tonight as they wouldn't keep on the road. He had about twelve packs, which was wonderful. That was more than enough to heal them fully. He handed half of the stack to Goro before tearing open his first packet.

"We don't need to hurry since it's nighttime," Akira reasoned. "No one should be coming by for anything. We should just take our clothes and anything important. The parents' bank account has probably been frozen, so that's a loss. I keep a separate account though in my original name. That way it's not traced back to a death certificate. Most of the money gets put in there anyway."

"Where will we go?" Goro opened up a pack. "We can't go back to Tokyo."

"I'm not sure yet," Akira admitted. He took a drink from his pack while he thought about their situation. "There's a few cities up north. We can see if any of them strike our fancy when we get there. We'll need to find new parents too."

"You mean, make more thralls," Morgana's voice held a little bit of venom.

"I have to have parents because I look like a teenager," Akira retorted. "I can't pass myself off as an adult even though I'm practically geriatric."

"Point taken," Morgana begrudgingly agreed.

It didn't take them much time to pack. Goro hardly had anything, Morgana had nothing, and most of his stuff was clothes and knick knacks he had acquired over the years. They loaded their things into the spare car. This car was also in his other name, so the chances of someone reporting it stolen were slim to none. Morgana crawled into the backseat while Goro took the passenger seat. They were out of the house by three-thirty. The sun wouldn't be up for another three hours or so.

* * *

"Hey, love?" Akira nudged Goro awake. "Want to get out and stretch a bit."

"Yeah. What time is it?" His love stretched in his seat. His muscles ached from sitting in a car all day and healing from a car crash the day previous. Morgana shifted in his lap before waking up as well.

"It's a little after five. I think there's an internet cafe here. I want to let Futaba know we're okay," Akira unbuckled his seatbelt.

"How do you know she won't rat us out?" Goro asked. Akira couldn't deny the validity of his concern. Someone had tried to kill them the other night. They would have succeeded had they been mere humans. Goro was on Futaba's shit list, and he wasn't faring much better.

"I have something she can't refuse. She'll want me alive if she wants me to give it to her," Akira answered. "Morgana, you're more than welcome to wander around if you don't want to hang with us. I promise we won't leave without you."

"You better not," Morgana jumped out of the car. The cat disappeared into the crowd, with sushi on the brain.

"How can a strip mall not have at least one sushi restaurant," Morgana huffed, "The only thing here is an overpriced French cafe. What a rip."

"Oh, hi kitty. Did you want fish?" A kindly, feminine voice called from above. "Here, I have a spare can of crab"

The lady took a can from her bag and pulled off the top. The crab wasn't the best smelling in the world, but it was pretty good.

"Thanks!" Morgana smiled at the kind lady.

"I'm sorry I can't take you home. My husband is allergic to cats. Though it seems like you belong to someone already since you're wearing this cute little ascot," The lady giggled.

"I don't belong to anyone! I am Morgana," Morgana was a little indignant, but let it slide when the beautiful lady smiled at him.

"Stay safe. Okay kitty?" The lady bid him farewell before walking towards a tall man wearing tinted glasses. They were a cute couple, probably about late thirties to early forties for humans. The lady had coal black hair while the man had lighter brown locks, almost the same shade as...

"Oh no," Morgana groaned as he took off after the couple. They stopped by a convenience store. The couple split up to grab different items. Morgana trailed after the woman, remembering her saying that the man was allergic to cats. He didn't need to be caught because he caused someone to go into a sneezing fit.

The woman walked down an aisle full of feminine products, grabbing her preferred brand of pads before turning to look at the various options of pregnancy tests.

"What's wrong?" Morgana asked, noticing the woman's forlorn expression as she stared at the tests.

"Nothing, I... Oh... hi kitty," The woman smiled at him.

"You understood me?" Morgana's eyes widened.

"Love, who are you talking too?" The man, her husband, walked into the aisle.

"You too?!" Morgana was flabbergasted. "Persona?"

"What do you know about persona?" The man whispered. It was obvious to Morgana he didn't want to get caught talking to a cat.

"That's not important right now. You're in danger. Both of you," Morgana whispered. The bell marking new customers rang. The familiar mops of black and brown hair peeked over the aisle walls. "Crap. I don't have time to explain, but leave as quickly and quietly as you can. Don't draw any attention to yourselves."

Before the couple could question him, he bounded off towards Akira and Akechi. Hoping he could at least draw their attention long enough to let the couple escape. They looked like a nice, if not sad couple. He didn't want them to get stuck in a life of servitude. Even if Akira was nice and pretty much acted the role of good son.

"Hey guys!" He called out to the pair. "Did you get a hold of Futaba?"

"Yeah, though I'm a little peeved that Akira promised her an original Featherman promotional poster. A signed one at that," Goro sulked.

"I had to buy her off somehow," Akira tried to reason with the other boy. "Let's get some snacks before heading off again."

As the boys headed towards the snack aisle, Morgana checked on the older couple. The woman was making her final purchase before meeting her husband outside. The cat breathed a sigh of relief. Once the boys had their snacks, the trio made their way back to the car.

"I need to grab one more thing," Akira said as he handed his bags and keys to Goro. "I'll be back in few."

Morgana had curled up on Goro's lap. The boy spent the time flipping through a magazine he had bought at the convenience store. Morgana studied the cover with mild interest. It was a girl's fashion magazine, one specifically focusing on lolita fashion.

"I didn't know you were into lolita fashion," Morgana attempted to make small talk.

"I'm not actually. This is the first time I've studied the fashion," Goro sighed.

"Is there anything that you are interested in?" Morgana asked pointedly. "I noticed you were upset when you mentioned a signed poster from that show Futaba likes."

"To be honest, I'm not as upset as I sounded," Goro admitted. "I liked the show because the heroes were just and always took out the villains. For the longest time, I wanted something like that for myself. I guess I envisioned myself in the role of hero in my quest to take down Shido. For the last three months though, that part of myself has been slipping away."

"Because of your desire for revenge, there was no room for anything else," Morgana fitted the puzzle together. "Things like television shows and pancakes were there to just dull the pain of your journey."

"Pretty much," Goro stroked the wise cat's fur. "Right now I feel like John Cusack's character from that movie where he played an assassin going through a midlife crisis."

"Who?"

"An American actor. The movie was American too. Akira and I watched it a few months ago because it was about an assassin going through a midlife crisis," Goro explained.

A light knock on the driver's side door broke their conversation. Akira waved through the window,   
waiting for Goro to unlock the door for him. With a click of a button, Akira opened the door and plopped himself down on the seat. The car roared to life as he turned the key Goro had conveniently placed in the ignition.

"What did you need to get?" Goro asked, buckling his seatbelt.

"Our new house key," Akira smiled as he held up a ring of keys. The car backed out of the parking space, then drove forward towards their new home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end... For now.


End file.
